Are you caught up with the most recent online marketing changes, updates and theories? Wishpond’s James Scherer, in this four-part series, will examine the most influential changes that have happened in the past six months, and how those changes affect you and your business on a daily basis.

Many of you may already be familiar with the idea of social media optimization, but let me break it down for those who aren’t: Since Google’s integration of the Hummingbird algorithm update (we’re talking SEO here, by the way), there’s been a new focus on optimizing your content for social media.

Google also increased the value of all social shares. Traditional SEO is focused on link-building (the more links to, and from, your content, the higher it ranked on Google search. Links are, essentially, votes in your content’s favor). While links are still incredibly important, equally important (and in the +1’s case, more important) are social endorsements such as Facebook likes and shares, LinkedIn shares, tweets and Pinterest pins.

Here are five tips for optimizing your content for social media:

Put time and effort into header images that catch the eye — use images whenever posting to social platforms

Brainstorm two blog titles: one which is optimized for SEO (long-tail keyword) and another which is more appealing on social (short, intriguing, eye-catching). Use the first on your site and the other when promoting.

Get the technical details right: Edit for grammar, spelling and broken links. Use link shorteners like bitly, and keep your posts short on all platforms (as shorter posts get higher engagement)

Ensure your post has a hook and a call-to-action: Try a question and “Click for more”

Encourage comments and REPLY TO THEM

Hopefully you now have a better idea of the impact of SMO, and what it means for your business. Have you noticed a performance change in your content since Google updated its algorithm in late August? Start the conversation below!